Family members followed the pair from Denpasar to Cilacap but had not seen them for seven days, after Chan's girlfriend and his brother were denied access to the pair's Bali prison just minutes before the transfer.

The relatives spent more than four hours on Nusakambangan talking to the two prisoners. When they returned, they offered no comment on the condition and mindset of the pair.

Consular staff heading into and out of the Cilacap port were enveloped by media, though diplomats did not expect that to happen today because the families appeared to have secured access to drive their cars into the port area.

The family members boarded a wooden boat for the 400-metre journey across to Nusakambangan.

Multiple members of each family were allowed to go to Nusakambangan and spent up to four hours there.

Peter Morrissey, a lawyer for the men, said it was an emotional time for the pair and their families.

"The Indonesian authorities, generally speaking, are very humane about the way in which visits are conducted and we expect that they'll be allowed to have contact in peace and spend time together," he said.

Appeal against clemency refusal to be heard on Thursday

An Indonesian court will hear an appeal on Thursday from Chan and Sukumaran against president Joko Widodo's refusal to grant them clemency.

However, he said his government would be open to abolishing the death penalty if the Indonesian people wanted change.

The looming sentences have sparked diplomatic tensions between Australia and Indonesia, with Canberra warning the execution of the two Australians would have implications, not just in Australia but globally.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott last week said he had "requested a conversation" with Mr Widodo.

"As yet it hasn't been possible to organise a further conversation, but we won't stop trying," he told reporters this afternoon.

Mr Abbott said while he considered himself both a friend and admirer of Mr Widodo, he believed the executions were not in accordance with Indonesia's best values.

"We respect Indonesia's sovereignty, of course, we respect Indonesia's system, of course, but we think it's right and proper that Indonesia should look to its own long-term best interests and its own long-term best values," he said.

"The execution of these two Australians who have become assets to Indonesia in its fight against drug crime is not in Indonesia's best interests, and it isn't in accordance with Indonesia's best values."

Chan and Sukumaran are among a group of drug convicts, including foreigners from France, Brazil, the Philippines, Nigeria and Ghana, who are expected to be executed at the same time on the island.